Torn
by bean21
Summary: What am I supposed to do? I just feel so...torn.
1. Chapter 1

A/N- A quick note on most of my minutemen fanfics: they can stand alone for the most part, but they all basically tie in with each other. You can read "Torn" by itself, but you might want to read "Different" first. Thanks for reading any of it and tell me what you think! :)

Torn

Stephanie walked quietly into the cafeteria and over to the pop machine. She looked around, but only a few other students were in the large room. Then she noticed Zeke sitting alone where he usually sat with Virgil and Charlie. She turned back to the pop machine without thinking much about him, but she suddenly remembered something Virgil had said when he called her a week ago. They had been talking about Zeke.

"_I think life's hitting him harder than us."_

Looking back at Zeke, Stephanie realized that she hadn't seen him in school a single all last week, and that she hadn't noticed, or cared, until just then. He was just staring off into space, looking really thoughtful, and also a little more tired than usual.

Suddenly Stephanie felt guilty. This was one of Virgil's best friends and she had never actually met him. Forgetting about the pop she had been about to get, she started walking toward Zeke.

"Stephanie!" Derek waved at her from across the room. Half-heartedly returning his wave she walked over to him.

"Hey Derek."

"What's wrong, Steph?"

"Nothing."

"You don't seem very happy."

Stephanie shrugged. "I'm fine."

"Ok. Hey, I'm gonna go talk to some of the guys, ok?"

"Yeah, Derek." As he walked away Stephanie sighed. Derek seemed so self-absorbed these days. At least, more than usual.

She looked over at Zeke again. He was just sitting there, absentmindedly fiddling with a fork. Even though he was a really unapproachable guy, she felt like she should talk to him. Taking a deep breath she headed for his table.

"Hi."

He jumped a little bit, then looked up at her with surprise. "Stephanie?"

She smiled, hoping she looked friendly. She was actually really nervous. "You're Zeke, right?"

"Uh, yeah."

"I'm Stephanie, but I guess you already knew that." She looked down at Zeke, feeling embarrassed. She stood there a little awkwardly, not sure of what to say. He was silently looking up at her through his dark hair.

"Well," she continued, "I just noticed that you were gone last week so I thought I'd say that it's nice to have you back. Plus I thought I should finally introduce myself for real since I never have. Virgil talks about you a lot, so I just thought I'd say hi." She smiled again, then turned to leave.

"So what does Virgil say about me?"

Stephanie turned back to Zeke with a small smile. He was looking down at his fork again, but at least he had said something. That was all Stephanie needed.

"Well, he says that you're really into interpretive dance," she said slowly, walking back to the table. Zeke looked up at her with a small hint of a confused smile. She laughed. "Mind if I sit down?"

Zeke shrugged. "Be my guest."

Stephanie pulled out a chair at the small table and sat down. "Honestly? Virgil's told me that you're a really cool guy. He's made me want to meet you."

"Well, now what do you think?" Zeke asked, looking over at Stephanie again.

She looked back at Zeke. "I think it might take some time to figure out, but I'm pretty sure he's right."

Zeke looked like he was about to say something, but a sudden voice interrupted.

"Steph, what are you doing?"

"Oh, hey Derek." Inwardly she groaned. She could already tell that Derek was annoyed.

"Come on Steph, let's go sit down," Derek said, glancing at Zeke. Stephanie stood up slowly.

"See you later, Zeke," she said kindly. Zeke nodded.

"Stephanie, what were you doing?!" Derek exclaimed as they started to walk. He was looking at her like she was out of her mind.

"I was just introducing myself."

"Why?"

"He's Virgil's friend and I wanted to meet him."

"Don't take this the wrong way, Stephanie, but you're one of the most popular girls in school. You don't need to be meeting guys like him."

"His name is Zeke, and what do you mean _guys like him_?"

"You know, guys like him. Zack, or whatever his name is. Loners, outcasts, whatever you want to call them."

They were sitting at their usual table now and she looked over at Derek in disbelief. "He's Virgil's friend, Derek!"

"Steph, who cares?"

"I do." She shook her head sadly. "I thought you did, too."

"Look, Virgil's a good guy and all, but c'mon, he's a total dork."

"What happened to you, Derek?" Stephanie asked quietly. Everyone else was starting to sit down at their table, so the two became quiet.


	2. Chapter 2

Stephanie glanced around the cafeteria and noticed that Zeke had left his table and was talking to Jeanette across the room. That seemed a little weird, but she didn't pay much attention. She started to get lost in her own thoughts when a loud noise suddenly brought her back to the now full cafeteria. Zeke had obviously tripped and was now sprawled out on the floor not far from Stephanie's table.

"Wow, nice going, dork," Derek said as he started laughing along with most of the student body. Stephanie didn't laugh, but she didn't do anything to help, either.

She just watched as Zeke slowly moved to a kneeling position. One of the football players walked by and roughly shoved him back to the floor, getting more laughs from the teens.

"Hey!" The one voice rang clearly through the cafeteria, quickly silencing everyone.

Virgil and Charlie were standing behind Zeke, looking out at the students. Charlie stepped forward and gave Zeke his hand while everyone watched silently. Virgil was the one who had spoken, so he faced the students as Zeke stood up off the floor.

"Why are you all laughing? What's so funny about one guy tripping? Did any of you even stop to think about whether or not he's ok?"

Stephanie bit the corner of her lip guiltily, then looked around to see the other students' reactions. Some of them, including Derek, were looking at each other and shaking their heads, like they thought Virgil was crazy. Others just looked like they weren't sure what to do.

"You know what I wish someone would do in this school?" Virgil continued, talking loud enough for everyone to hear. "It's something that I don't think has happened before. I wish that, for once, whenever someone is embarrassed or whatever, that other people would think about how they would feel if it was happening to them. I wish people would just ask if the person was ok, and then forget about it."

Many of the students were looking down nervously and guiltily. The whole cafeteria was silent, until Jeanette stood up. With a big smile she walked over and stood next to Charlie. "Me too." The four of them looked around the cafeteria.

Guilt was gnawing at Stephanie. She wanted to stand up so badly, but she couldn't stop thinking about what people might think about her and wondering if anyone else would stand up. Feeling shaky, she slowly stood to her feet, with her hands on the table for support. Looking Virgil in the eyes, she nodded. He smiled at her, and when she looked at Zeke's eyes she saw that they were filled with gratitude. Feeling less shaky, she stayed standing.

Across the cafeteria she heard chair legs scrape across the floor as a handful of students slowly stood to their feet, one by one, and nodded at Virgil. Virgil looked around and nodded back at them with a small smile. Stephanie and the other students sat down again as Virgil, Charlie, and Zeke went to their table. Slowly the conversation in the cafeteria picked up again, but it was obvious that most of the students were talking about what had happened.

Stephanie looked at the teens at her table. All of them were staring at her with wide eyes and open mouths.

"What were you doing?!" Derek exclaimed. He looked like he was about to have a heart attack.

"I was agreeing with Virgil," Stephanie answered softly, not meeting the astonished glances of the others.

"But, _why_?"

"Because he's right, Derek!" Stephanie exclaimed, looking up now. "All of us hate when we're embarrassed, so why should we laugh when someone else is?"

"Steph, they're nerds. Being embarrassed is just what happens to them. C'mon, you're popular, why do you care anyways?"

Stephanie frowned. "Being popular means not caring about my friends?"

"_We're _your friends, Steph," one of the girls said.

"Maybe I don't want to be popular," Stephanie answered softly. The other teens at her table gave her a weird look, then they all got quiet for the rest of lunch.


	3. Chapter 3

Stephanie was laying on her bed writing in her diary, but she hadn't actually written anything for a while. It was Friday afternoon, but she couldn't stop thinking about Monday. She was lost in thought, playing back through her mind what had happened then at lunch. She couldn't stop thinking about all the things Derek had said. He had seemed so different lately. It was like he didn't even care about Virgil anymore. Or anyone else, for that matter. Except maybe Jocelyn. He had been so full of himself and acting so, well, _popular_.

She sighed and held her head in her hands. Suddenly she started thinking about Virgil and wanting to see him. She quickly shut her diary and ran downstairs.

"Mom?"

"Yeah?"

"Is it ok if I go over to Virgil's house?"

"Sure sweetheart. Just don't stay for too long."

"Thanks, mom!"

OoOoOoOoOoOo

Virgil was out in his backyard. He was supposed to be finishing mowing the lawn, but he had stopped a few minutes ago to take a break. He absentmindedly picked up three rocks off the ground and started juggling them.

"Hey."

Dropping the rocks he whirled around. Stephanie was standing there, smiling at him.

"Oh, hi Steph! What're you doing here?"

"Do I need a reason to visit my friend?" she asked with a smile.

Virgil laughed. "Good point."

"But I guess I did sort of come here for a reason," Stephanie said as she sat down on a bench in Virgil's backyard. "A while back you asked if I'd like to hang out with you and Zeke and Charlie on a Friday night. Are you still offering?"

"Well definitely!" Virgil exclaimed, sitting down on a chair across from Stephanie. "Do you mean tonight?"

"I don't have anything else to do."

"Don't you have something you could do with Derek?" Virgil said, his voice getting softer. Stephanie thought he sounded kind of sad.

She rolled her eyes. "I guess he's probably doing something, but I want to hang out with you guys."

"Even though we're the biggest dorks at school?" Virgil asked with a smile.

Stephanie smiled a little bit. "You're my friend, Virgil. You always will be, no matter what other people call you. Charlie's cool too, and I'd like to get to know Zeke more."

"Have you met him? Zeke, I mean."

"Yeah, I introduced myself on Monday, right before..." Her voice faded.

Virgil looked at her and nodded. "By the way, Stephanie, I wanted to thank you for standing up. You didn't have to, but I'm really glad you did. I don't know how many people would have if you hadn't. And I know it couldn't have been easy. So, thanks."

Stephanie nodded. "You're right, it wasn't easy, and things have been kinda weird since then, but I'm glad I did."

The two friends were quiet for a minute, until the silence was broken by the sound of a motorcycle pulling up in front of Virgil's house.

"Virgil? You here, man?"

"I'm in the back," Virgil yelled in reply. A few seconds later Zeke turned the corner and walked into Virgil's backyard. He pulled off his helmet and shook out his dark hair. Then he looked over and saw Stephanie.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't know..." he began, looking from Stephanie to Virgil. "Uh, I can go."

"Dude, it's fine," Virgil said kindly. "What were you coming over for?"

Zeke glanced behind him, towards the front of Virgil's house. "Uh, I got a new bike today. I wanted to show everyone I know, but um, you're the only person I could think of. I would show Charlie, but I'm kinda in a hurry and he'd probably want to show me some new invention or something. But I can go, I'll just show you tonight."

"Zeke, there is no way that you're leaving without showing me!" Virgil answered with a smile.

"But Virg, you have company," Zeke said softly, sounding embarrassed as he glanced at Stephanie.

"You mean Steph?" Virgil looked back at her and smiled. "It doesn't matter. Plus, she's going to be hanging out with us tonight, too. So you might as well show us now."

Zeke's eyes suddenly got wide. "She's coming tonight, too?" he asked softly, almost in a whisper.

"Yeah. Zeke, what's wrong?"

"We're having it at my place tonight," Zeke said simply. Virgil's eyes got almost as wide as Zeke's.

"We can change it to my house tonight if you want," Virgil said quickly. Stephanie was just watching the guys with a confused look on her face.

Zeke shook his head. "It's fine, dude. We can still have it at my place."

"Are you sure, man? We don't have to."

"Virg, it's ok. She's your friend, and uh-" He lowered his voice even further. "If this is gonna become a regular thing she should know, dude."

"Are you sure this is ok, Zeke?"

"Don't worry about it, man. It's fine. Anyways I'm gonna go. I have to run an errand for Mrs. Carpenter. I'll show you my bike tonight."

Stephanie stood up and walked toward the two guys. "Zeke, just because I'm a girl doesn't mean I don't want to see your motorcycle too."

"You sure?" Zeke asked, looking at Stephanie like he didn't really believe her.

"C'mon, just show us!" Virgil answered. Zeke smiled a little and started walking around to the front of Virgil's house. Virgil grabbed Stephanie's arm and pulled her closer to him.

"You've never liked motorcycles," he whispered, looking to make sure Zeke hadn't heard.

"Just because I said that to him doesn't mean I like them," she whispered back with a smile. Virgil smiled back and they followed Zeke out front.


	4. Chapter 4

"You ready, Steph?"

"Definitely! Let's go. Bye mom!"

Stephanie followed Virgil out her front door and climbed into his car, saying hi to Charlie who was in the back seat.

"So, Virgil, you're sure it's ok with Zeke that we're having it at the Carpenter's?" Charlie asked once they started going.

"Yeah, he said it was."

"Ok guys, explanation time," Stephanie said, looking over at Virgil. "What do you mean 'the Carpenter's'? I thought Zeke said it was at his house. Isn't his last name Thompson? And why wouldn't it be ok to have it at his house? Or wherever we are having it? Ah!" She held her head in her hands. "I am so confused."

"Look, Stephanie," Virgil said slowly, "I would explain it to you all, but I think Zeke wants to tell you himself. Everything will make sense in a while. Oh, Charlie, by the way, Jeanette's gonna be there tonight, too."

"Jeanette?" Stephanie asked. "Ok, now I really am confused."

Virgil smiled a little bit but didn't say anything. Charlie started talking about some new invention he was working on, but in not too long Virgil pulled over to the side of the street in front of a small house. "Here we are."

The three of them walked to the door and Virgil knocked. He turned to Stephanie with a smile.

"Brace yourself."

"Huh?"

The door was immediately flung open. "Virgil! Charlie!"

A crowd of kids flung themselves on Virgil and Charlie, all talking at once. Then suddenly all six pairs of energetic eyes turned to Stephanie.

"Are you Stephanie?" a small girl asked.

"Yeah, I am," Stephanie answered with a slightly confused but kind smile. "Who are you?"

"I'm Sarah!" "I'm Billy!" "I'm Ellie!" All the kids started saying their name's at once, trying to be louder than their siblings. Stephanie laughed and held up her hands.

"Ok, one at a time. Now, you start." Stephanie bent over with her hands on her knees so she was almost eye-level with the kids, then pointed to them one by one and they told her their names.

Virgil and Charlie watched with amazement. This was the quietest they had ever seen the Carpenter kids, but all six of them were just staring at Stephanie with wide eyes, like she was an angel or something. Virgil knew Stephanie had always been good with kids, but this was amazing!

"Ok, so, it's Sarah, Carrie, Billy, Ellie, Andy and Jamie. " Stephanie went down the line again, remembering every kid's name. They all beamed when she got it right.

"Ok, munchkins, let them come inside for crying out loud."

Virgil, Charlie, and Stephanie looked up to see Zeke with his arms crossed, head down, but a big smile on his face. The kids smiled up at him like they thought he was the greatest thing in the world, then scampered inside.

"You call them munchkins now? To their face?" Virgil asked as he stepped inside.

Zeke shrugged. "They seem to like it. Sorry about all that, Stephanie."

"You don't have to apologize, I love kids."

"Are they here, Zeke?" a woman's voice called.

"Yeah, they are," he yelled back. "Want to come meet Stephanie?"

A smiling lady emerged from the kitchen, wiping her hand on an apron, then extending it to Stephanie.

"I'm Elaine Carpenter."

"I'm Stephanie Jameson. Thank you so much for letting me come to your house."

"It's my pleasure! I'm sorry my husband can't be here, he usually works on Friday nights. But don't let me keep you with all my talking, I think your show is starting." Mrs. Carpenter said hi to Virgil and Charlie, then went back to the kitchen with a smile.

"So what we counting down tonight?" Virgil asked, sitting down on the couch. Stephanie took a seat next to him, starting to wonder if anyone would explain things to her, because she was really getting confused.

"Floods, I think," Zeke answered, sitting down on the floor, while Charlie took the recliner.

Stephanie bit the corner of her lip, looking at the tv screen, but thinking totally separate thoughts.

_I'm sure someone will explain things soon, stop worrying. So let's see, Zeke's last name is Thompson, not Carpenter, but that's Mrs. Carpenter, and this is the 'Carpenter's house', but Zeke said it was 'his place'. And I didn't think he had any siblings. Then again, I don't know very much about him at all. Just stop worrying and enjoy yourself tonight. _

She blew out a little puff of air.

"Steph, you ok?" Virgil asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine."

"Oh man, you're probably still confused, aren't you?"

Smiling a little bit, she nodded. Zeke suddenly looked up and between her and Virgil.

"You guys didn't tell her?"

"No, we thought we'd leave it to you."

"Oh boy." Zeke ran his hand through his hair. "Uh-"

"Guys! Hush! You're missing the first flood!" Charlie exclaimed.

"Come with me, Stephanie," Zeke said softly, looking slightly uncomfortable. He got up and started walking to the hallway, hitting Charlie over the top of the head as he walked past.

Stephanie looked at Virgil. "Is this ok? With him, I mean," she whispered.

"It'll be fine, don't worry about it. Just go."

Stephanie stood up and started walking slowly, glancing back at Virgil as she went. He smiled, gave her a small thumbs-up, and went back to watching the tv. Zeke was standing in the hallway in front of the stairs, watching as she walked over to where he was.

_Calm down, Steph, he's just a guy._

She was usually really good with people. Just about everybody. Stephanie hated to admit it and felt like a dork, but she was really intimidated by Zeke. Not only was he really big, pretty much towering over her, he was a biker guy who was almost always glaring at someone. Over all, kind of scary. She sighed a little bit as she reached him and tried to smile.

"So, is something up?" She hoped her voice was casual, but that was hard.

"Oh come on, don't even pretend you haven't noticed," Zeke said softly, looking down at her.

Stephanie looked down at the floor, unsure of what to say.

Zeke sighed. "My name's Thompson, their's is Carpenter. I don't have siblings that young. Stephanie, these people aren't even related to me."

The pieces started to come together in Stephanie's mind even as Zeke slowly said:

"I'm a foster child."

Stephanie wasn't really that shocked, just sort of surprised, but for some reason she couldn't speak. What could she say? She was thankful when a voice cut in.

"Oh, hi Stephanie!" Jeanette waved from where she was coming down the stairs. "Hi Jeanette."

"Jeanette, Charlie and Virg are in the living room," Zeke said simply.

The spunky girl walked past them and into the living room. "Hi bluebird! Hi Virgil!"

Stephanie looked at Zeke with a questioning glance.

"Babysitter."

She nodded her head. Everything made sense. Why did she feel so weird about it?

Zeke shrugged. "Look, plain and simple, I've been a foster child my whole life. I've never been to juvie and my parents aren't criminals, if you're wondering. They just gave me up for adoption when I was born. So, now you know."

Stephanie nodded and smiled, but she still couldn't think of anything to say. The two of them walked quietly back to the living room.


	5. Chapter 5

"Where were you, Steph?"

"I told you I might not be there, Derek."

"But I didn't think you actually wouldn't!"

"C'mon, I don't have to do absolutely everything with you every Friday night, do I?"

"So what did you do that was better than hanging out with me?"

Stephanie sat down on her bed, starting to wish she hadn't called Derek.

"I went and hung out with Virgil."

"Virgil? Anyone else?"

"Well, Charlie, Zeke, and Jeanette were there too."

"No way! Stephanie, what's wrong with you?!"

Stephanie felt tears prick at her eyes. "Derek," she said softly, "I needed someone to talk to, not someone to nag at me."

"You're right, Steph. I'm sorry. What did you want to talk about?"

She opened her mouth, then shut it. She had wanted to tell him that Zeke was a foster child, but something made her rethink doing it.

"Stephanie?"

She sighed. "Look, I'm sorry I bailed on you but I had a really good time."

"Did any one see you?"

"What do you mean?"

"Did any of the popular people from school see you hanging out with them?"

"No, we were at, uh, we were at Zeke's house. Why would it matter anyways?"

"I don't know, it's just, well, I don't want you to totally ruin your reputation by hanging out with them."

Stephanie frowned. "Or is it that you don't want me to ruin _your _reputation?"

"Stephanie, come on, don't be like that. You're my girl, I care about you and what other people think."

"No, Derek," she whispered.

"What?"

"You've always just cared about what people think about _you_. You don't care who you hurt, so long as you're still popular."

"Steph, what are you talking about? Of course I care about you."

"When did you stop caring about Virgil?"

"I, uh, I didn't."

"Then why does it matter if I hang out with him?"

"It's not Virgil, ok Steph." Derek sounded more annoyed than genuine. "It's Charlie and that other guy."

"_Zeke! _His name is _Zeke_."

"Whatever, Stephanie."

"No, not whatever!" Her voice started to rise as a tear slid down her face. "If you really cared about Virgil you would care about them, too. They're his friends!"

"Well that's his fault that he chose loser friends after ditching us."

"Ditching us?! Derek, _we _ditched _him _if anything! What happened that first day of freshman year..."

"Look, Steph," Derek interrupted, "calm down, ok? It doesn't matter what happened then..."

"Derek!" Now it was Stephanie that was interrupting. Her voice became suddenly quiet and sad. "What happened to you?"

"What do you mean, Steph?"

"I mean you don't care about anyone anymore! All you care about is yourself and being popular. Even our relationship is only about you. If being the head cheerleader's boyfriend will keep you popular you'll stick with it, even if you'd rather be with Jocelyn Lee! I don't know how long it's been like this, or if it's been this way the whole time and I was just too blind to see it, or didn't see it because I didn't want to see it."

"Steph, c'mon, you're taking this way too far." Stephanie heard the words, and wanted to believe them, but the boy on the other end of the phone didn't sound very sure of himself.

"Am I, Derek?"

"Oh man Stephanie I am so sorry, but I have to go. I'll talk to you later, ok?"

"Ok."

"Hey, it's ok, all right?"

"Derek?"

"Yeah?"

"Promise me we _will _talk about it."

"We will, promise. Now I gotta go."

"Ok. Bye."

"Bye."

Stephanie hung up the phone and laid back on her bed with a groan. Something told her Derek really wouldn't want to talk about it. She realized that she didn't want to, either. She quickly grabbed her diary and started writing.

_How can I keep ignoring this? _she wrote. _I wish I could pretend like it wasn't happening, like these obvious problems weren't so obvious. I've kinda tried to just ignore things that Derek says, but it's not working anymore. He's not the same guy he used to be. At least I don't think he is. Or was he always this guy? Am I just seeing it now? Like I told him a few minutes ago, he doesn't care anymore. All he cares about is himself. I don't really want to be his girlfriend anymore. I would so much rather hang out with Virgil, and even Charlie and Zeke. They seem pretty cool. At least I think they do. I don't know what to think of anything anymore! It looks like I have two choices. Either I stay with Derek, stay popular, and go on being friends with Virgil just in the background, basically keep my life the way it is now. But I feel like that life is a lie. Or I can break up with Derek, be friends with Virgil and his friends, and stop being popular. What am I supposed to do? I just feel so...torn._


	6. Chapter 6

Stephanie walked into the cafeteria and looked around. About half of the student body was already there, talking and laughing. It was Monday afternoon, and Stephanie already felt exhausted. She was _not _ready for a whole new week. Derek was already sitting at their table, talking to some of the other football players. She looked over and saw Zeke sitting where he usually did, but when he looked up she quickly moved her eyes away. When she did she saw Virgil coming towards her.

"Hey, Stephanie!"

"Oh, hey Virgil!"

"How's it going?"

"Oh, you know. Gotta love Mondays."

Virgil smiled. "I know it. Hey, thanks for hanging out with us Friday night."

"Oh, no problem, it was fun."

Virgil's smile faded a tiny bit and he lowered his voice. "You seemed to be kinda quiet after Zeke talked to you."

"Oh, uh, I guess so."

"Look, Steph, I know that it's kinda crazy at first, him being a foster child and all, but he's a really good guy. He's not that different, he just has a slightly different background."

Stephanie nodded. "I know, Virgil. I do want to hang out with you guys more. It's just, I don't know, it seems hard to be around Zeke, sometimes. Like it's just hard to relate to him."

"I know it can feel like that. But really, it's not that hard once you get to know him."

Stephanie nodded again.

Virgil smiled a little bit again. "I would love it if you could hang out with us more, Stephanie. But if you don't want to, that's ok too."

She was about to say she would love it too, then sighed. "I'm not sure what I want to do right now, Virgil. I think I would like to, but I just don't really know. Give me some time, ok?"

Virgil nodded, then smiled a little bit. "Is it too much to invite you to lunch? Cafeteria food isn't all that great, I know, but we have a pretty good view of things from our table."

Stephanie hesitated, then laughed. "I think a change of view will be good for me."

With another smile Virgil offered his arm, which Stephanie took with a laugh. But they both got quieter once they actually reached the table. Zeke looked up and in looked between the two of them for a few seconds, then shrugged and looked down again. It looked like he was trying to fix a watch.

Stephanie glanced at Virgil, then they sat down.

"So," Zeke said without looking up, "since when do you hang with us at school?"

"Is that ok?" Stephanie asked softly.

"Of course it is, Steph," Virgil said quickly, but she still looked at Zeke to answer.

"Yeah. I just didn't know if you'd ever get around to doing it."

"Why wouldn't I?"

Zeke looked up and studied Stephanie's face for a few seconds, then went back to working on the watch. "Are you kidding me? People are already starting to stare. Popular cheerleaders just don't sit with people like us."

With shock Stephanie started to look around. People really _were_ staring. As must as she hated to admit it, Stephanie knew Zeke was right. She felt her face get hot. Why did people have to be like that?

"Steph, you can leave if you want to," Virgil said softly.

Stephanie had no idea what she wanted to do. She really would like to eat with Virgil, and even Zeke, but what would other people think about her? She had to admit it, she was a people-pleaser. She wanted to make everybody happy. How could she do that in this situation?

"Hey guys." Charlie's voice interrupted her thoughts as he sat down out the table. "Oh, uh, hi Stephanie."

Suddenly she heard footsteps and saw Derek hurrying over to her. "Stephanie, what are you doing?!"

"Derek, uh..." What could she say?

"You can't eat with them!" Virgil, Zeke, and Charlie were all just staring at them. So was everyone else in the cafeteria.

"Why not?" she whispered. Everyone had gotten quiet, and Stephanie could practically feel their eyes boring into her.

"You're _my _girlfriend. You don't eat lunch with other guys! Besides, everyone has their tables, and this is not yours!"

"Steph, it's ok," Virgil said quietly.

Her eyes appologized to him, but she said nothing as she slowly moved to sit with Derek. Everyone slowly started talking again, but they talked quietly, most of them looking over at Stephanie every few minutes. She wished she could just crawl into a hole somewhere, away from everyone else.

Derek didn't say anything, but she could tell he was embarrassed and angry. She wanted to please everyone, including Derek, but how could she please Virgil and Derek at the same time? How could she live in two different worlds?

Virgil sighed as he looked down at the table. Charlie looked uncomfortable, and Zeke stopped working on his watch.

"How long's it gonna take?" Zeke asked quietly.

"What're you talking about?" Virgil answered, looking up at his friend.

"When's she gonna choose who's side she's on?"

"Stephanie?"

Zeke nodded.

"This is really hard for her, dude," Virgil answered.

Zeke shook his head. "It shouldn't be hard to tell who your real friends are."

"It doesn't seem like it, but it can be hard."

"Maybe. But she's gotta figure out who's side she's on, because right now she can't be on both."


	7. Chapter 7

Virgil sighed as he laid back on his bed. It had been about two weeks since Stephanie had wanted to eat lunch with them. He'd seen her off and on since, but they mostly just talked outside of school. She had come to his house a week ago, last Friday night, but had just called to say she couldn't hang out tonight.

One subject had been on his mind a lot because of something that happened last Friday night when Stephanie was over. He couldn't stop thinking about it...

"Is there really no better way to spend Friday nights?" Zeke asked, plopping down on Virgil's couch with a bag of chips in his hand. "Surely there's something better on tv."

"Better than this?!" Charlie asked. "No way!"

"How many natural disasters are they gonna do, anyways? They have to run out sometime."

Virgil laughed. "That's true, I guess. Then we'll go back to having no life on Friday nights."

"You call this a _life_?" Zeke asked, but he was smiling.

Stephanie laughed. "You guys sure fight a lot."

"Yeah," Charlie said absentmindedly, without taking his attention off the tv. "Jeanette told us that once after we went back in time."

"Charlie!" Zeke yelled, sitting up suddenly and spilling potato chips all over Virgil's couch.

Stephanie looked quickly between all three of the guys. "What?"

"Nothing," Virgil said quickly. Zeke and Charlie were looking at him with nervous faces and Stephanie was looking at him with confusion. He had to say _something._ But what could he say? He wasn't going to lie to Stephanie, but he couldn't really tell her the truth either. "Um, it's nothing."

"Did he say-"

"It doesn't matter what he said," Virgil said, interrupting Stephanie. "Sometimes when Charlie gets ideas about some science thing he starts talking like he's actually done them." That was true, Charlie _had _done that before, but Virgil still felt guilty.

Stephanie opened her mouth to say something but Virgil's mom walked into the room and asked how everything was going.

"Everything's fine, mom," Virgil answered, but he wasn't sure of that himself...

With a small groan Virgil sat up on his bed again. The rest of that night had been pretty quiet, and seemed kind of tense. After Charlie appologized to him and Zeke later on no one had brought up the subject all week. Still, Virgil couldn't get it out of his head.

He quickly leaned over and grabbed his phone, then started hitting the numbers. Standing up he held it to his ear and started to walk around his room.

"Yeah?"

"Hey Zeke."

"Hey Virg. What up?"

"Uh, not a whole lot."

"Ok, so why did you call?" Zeke asked. He never was one to beat around the bush.

"Actually, it's about last Friday night."

"Ok, what about it?"

"Well, um..."

"You want to tell her, don't you, Virg?"

Virgil laughed a little bit. "I didn't know you could read minds."

"Oh yeah, totally," Zeke answered, then his voice got serious again. "Virg, this is huge, man."

"I know," Virgil answered with a sigh, sitting down on his bed again. "But, Zeke..."

"Have you talked to Charlie yet?"

"No. I wanted to see what you think first, 'cause I already know Charlie's gonna freak when I tell him. Do you really think I shouldn't?"

Zeke was quiet for a little bit. "After what happened last Friday, I think it might be good to tell her. I just honestly don't know if she'll believe you."

"That's what I was worried about, too. But I just really feel like I should tell her."

"What will you do if she doesn't believe you?"

"I really don't know."

"Talk to Charlie. If he lets you, tell her. Good luck, bro."

"Thanks, Zeke. See ya tonight."

"Later Virg."

Virgil hung up his phone and looked at it. Time to call Charlie. Oh boy.


	8. Chapter 8

"No way!"

"Charlie, c'mon..."

"No, Virgil! No, no, no, no, _no_!"

"Charlie, just listen to me-"

"Are you out of your mind?! We_ cannot_ tell anyone!"

"But after Friday night she deserves to know." Virgil felt like that was the first entire sentence he had gotten in since he first called.

"Look," Charlie said slowly, calming down a little, "I'm sorry that I slipped last week. But Virgil, Stephanie can't know about this! No one can!"

"Why not? It's not like we even have the time machine anymore."

"But if anyone found out they might want us to make it again or something!"

"Who says they would even believe us?"

"Who says Stephanie will believe you?"

Virgil sighed. "I don't know. But I need to tell her."

"I don't know about this, Virgil."

"Come on, Charlie. What's the worst that could happen?"

"A lot."

Virgil waited without answering. After a few seconds of silence Charlie sighed.

"Fine."

Virgil's jaw dropped. "Really?"

"I guess so."

"Thank you, Charlie!"

"Just be sure she's the only one you tell, ok Virgil?"

"Yeah, sure. Thanks man, I didn't know if you'd let me."

"I don't know why I am. She's the only one, right?"

"Yeah, whatever."

"No, not 'whatever', Virgil! Seriously, she's the only one!"

"Ok, Charlie. Thanks man. See you tonight."

"Bye."

"Bye."


	9. Chapter 9

Stephanie stood with one hand resting on her hip, looking into her closet. She couldn't decide what to wear. Derek wanted her to watch a movie with him and some of his friends over at his house. She didn't want to be too dressed up, but still wanted to look nicer than usual. Still having a few hours before going over there, she sighed as she looked at her clothes.

Suddenly her phone rang. Shutting her closet door, she walked over to pick it up.

"Hello?"

"Hey Stephanie."

"Oh, hey Virgil. Um, sorry, but didn't I already tell you I can't hang out tonight?"

"Oh, yeah, you did, but that wasn't what I was calling about, actually. It's not quite tonight yet, though."

"What do you mean, Virgil?"

"Uh, do you think you could come over to my house? Just for a little bit."

"I guess so. Why?"

"I wanted to talk to you about something."

Stephanie felt her stomach tie in a knot. Ever since last Friday things had felt really weird, especially around Virgil and Charlie and Zeke. Realizing that Virgil was waiting for her to answer, she glanced over at her clock.

"Um, ok, I guess that would be all right, if it's quick."

"I'll try to make it. See you in a few minutes?"

"Yeah. Bye Virgil."

"Bye Steph."

OoOoOoOoOoOo

Stephanie sighed a little as she knocked on Virgil's door. She tried to smile when Mrs. Fox answered the door.

"Hi Stephanie. Virgil's in the living room."

"Thanks, Mrs. Fox."

She walked into the house and to the living room where Virgil was waiting.

"Hey Steph. Thanks for coming over."

"No problem." Stephanie sat down on the couch across from Virgil and tried to act casual. "What did you want to talk to me about?"

Virgil's uneasy face didn't help to calm down Stephanie's stomach. He looked really nervous.

"Uh, it was about last Friday night."

The smile Stephanie had been trying to keep on her face disappeared. The one thing she was worried about but most wanted to know about was here now. No ignoring it or wondering about it. This was it.

"Ok." That was all she could say.

Virgil sighed, then plunged in. He told her about the time machine, the "snowsuit guys", the black hole, and how, when they had come back, they had gone back in time so nobody knew about any of it. Stephanie listened without saying a word or showing any sort of a reaction on her face. She just sort of sat there, but she didn't lose a single word Virgil said.

"So, that's it." Virgil leaned back a little bit and looked at her.

"Wow, Virgil," Stephanie whispered, not even looking at him.

"I know! It's-"

"It's just great to lie to your friends."

"Stephanie!" Virgil looked shocked. "I would_ never_ lie to you!"

"Wow," Stephanie said again with a small laugh, but tears were starting to form in her eyes. "First you lie, then you pretend like you actually expect me to believe you."

"But, I, I mean..."

Stephanie looked over at Virgil. He looked completely confused and unsure of himself, and that surprised Stephanie, because she had never seen Virgil look like that.

"Just stop, Virgil," she whispered in a shaky voice.

"Stephanie, please."

She had never seen him look so hurt. For a few seconds as she looked at him she began to doubt herself, then she shook her head.

"This is ridiculous, Virgil. I don't know if you're trying to impress me or if you just think I'm stupid. But please don't ever talk to me about this again."

"I'm not lying to you, Steph," Virgil whispered.

Stephanie met her long-time friend's eyes, but the tears she saw forming there were too much for her to handle. With one last shake of her head she stood up and ran out of the house.

She stopped when she got outside and tried to slow her rapid breathing. Everything was blurry. The world was swimming through the tears in her eyes. Even though the setting sun warmed her body Stephanie shivered.


	10. Chapter 10

"Did you really expect anything different, man?"

"I guess not. I just didn't think she would react like that. She thought I lied to her!"

"What else would she think?"

"I don't know. I just really hoped somehow she would believe me."

"Virg, if, before we were the minutemen, someone you knew came up to you and told you they had figured out how to time travel, would you believe them?"

Zeke could hear Virgil's breathing on the other end of the phone and waited quietly for his friend's answer.

"No."

"It really does sound pretty crazy."

"But Steph usually is more willing to believe stuff like this."

"Yeah she did when she could actually see the minutemen. She has no evidence, and time travel is so out there, I probably wouldn't believe you either, dude."

"But what do I do now? She probably won't ever want to talk to me again."

"Honestly, I'm not sure, Virgil. We'll work it out somehow, ok? Just not tonight."

"I feel so awful, Zeke. She looked so, oh I don't know. So hurt."

"That's not your fault, Virg. You told her the truth. That's all you can do. I guess it's up to her whether she'll trust you enough to believe you or not."

OoOoOoOoOoOo

Stephanie picked out an outfit without even noticing which it was, quickly reapplied her makeup, then sat down on the edge of her bed, staring at her clock. Finally she decided she could head over to Derek's, even though it was still a little early. She tried not to think about Virgil, but she couldn't help a sudden thought that came to her as she was driving. Virgil had said they were going to be at Charlie's house tonight.

_Charlie lives right next to Derek._

She groaned, then thought about canceling with Derek. She really didn't feel very good. But he'd probably be upset if she bailed on him three weeks in a row. Sighing, she pulled into Derek's driveway. Glancing over, she saw Virgil's car and Zeke's motorcycle outside Charlie's house.

Before she got out of the car Stephanie leaned her head forward on the steering wheel and sighed. She just hoped she wouldn't have to face Virgil again any time soon. Truthfully, she didn't want to see anyone just then, but thought that watching a movie with Derek and his friends might get things off her mind.

It didn't.

Throughout the movie she couldn't concentrate. Any time someone tried to talk to her it took a long time to get her attention. Finally, about half way through the movie they were watching, she stood up off the couch.  
"I'm sorry guys," she said softly. "I need to go outside and get some fresh air."

"Are you ok?" one of the girls asked.

"Yeah I'm fine. Just go ahead and keep watching the movie."

As she headed to the door she heard someone get up behind her. "Hey Steph!"

Turning around, she saw Derek walking toward her. "Yeah?"

He came close to her and lowered his voice. "Just uh, promise me you're _just_ going outside. Don't go over to Charlie Tuttle's house, ok?"

She nodded. "I won't, Derek, don't worry. I promise. I don't want to go over there at all."

Derek nodded and went back to his seat on the couch. Stephanie glanced back one more time to see Jocelyn Lee sit down next to him. With a small sigh she walked out the door. The night was a little bit chilly, but the slight breeze felt refreshing. Closing her eyes, she just stood there, trying to stop the thoughts racing through her head, but it wasn't much help. Finally she allowed her thoughts to keep going through her mind and she tried to sort them out.

_Why would Virgil do that? He's never lied to me the entire time we've been friends. Making up some stupid story is one thing, but then he was acting like I should actually believe him! How could I? Should I? But how? It's impossible. But I've never seen him look like that, either. He looked so hurt that I wouldn't believe him. What am I supposed to do? _

"Stephanie?"

The sudden voice startled her, but as soon as she opened her eyes she wished she could shut them again.

"Oh, hi Zeke."

"Uh, are you ok?" he asked slowly, looking at her.

She nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine." _Just wishing I was invisible._

He didn't look like he really believed her, but just shrugged and walked over to his bike. She watched him rummage through a backpack and pull out his cell phone, then check for any missed calls. Putting the phone in his pocket, he turned back towards Charlie's house. Suddenly he stopped. Everything inside Stephanie wanted him to keep going, just to leave. But he turned around.

"Virgil didn't lie to you."

She groaned. "He told you?"

"Yeah. If you were in his place, wouldn't you want to tell someone that actually does believe you that your friend didn't believe you?"

Stephanie didn't answer, just looked down at the grass under her feet. Still wishing Zeke would go away, she didn't look up when he walked a little bit closer to her.

"Everything he told you was true. The time travel, the minutemen, the black hole, _everything." _

"Do you honestly expect me to just believe him?!" Stephanie exploded, looking up at Zeke. This time she didn't take her eyes away. What Zeke said next shocked her so much that she kept looking at his face, trying to understand.

"No, Stephanie. Honestly I don't."

"You don't?"

"No. What I _do _expect you to do is to think it through, not just immediately assume that Virgil's either crazy or a liar."

Stephanie's eyes fell again as she thought about that.

"Look," Zeke continued. "I haven't known Virgil for very long, really, but I already know that he doesn't like to lie, especially to people who are close to him. Has he ever lied to you before?"

"No," Stephanie admitted softly.

"Listen, you can choose whether you believe Virgil or not. All I'm saying is that me and Charlie both back him up 100, and you know that he wouldn't lie to you. Forget what it actually was that he told you, and remember that where you make your decision is based on those two things and how much you trust him."

Without another word Zeke walked back into Charlie's house and left Stephanie standing outside, thinking about what he had said.


	11. Chapter 11

_Dear Diary,_

_I can barely believe it, but it'll have been a week tomorrow since Virgil talked to me about the whole time travel thing. Six days and I still don't know what to think. I haven't seen much of him since then, either. I've kinda tried to avoid him at school. I don't want to, but I don't want to see him, either. I don't know what I want to do. A while back I wrote in this that I had two choices, basically Derek and popularity or Virgil and, well, whatever would come with that. But I don't know what to do. Part of me would want to be friends with Virgil and Charlie and Zeke, but now after the whole time travel thing I'm not sure. And sometimes when I'm with them I just feel so awkward, like I can't relate to them. Zeke's a foster child, so I don't know what that's like at all, so it's hard to relate to him, and Charlie's super smart, so half the time I have no clue what he's talking about. And I don't even know what to think of Virgil anymore. I never thought I'd say that. I have to know what to do, but I don't see how I can. I haven't been able to stop thinking about what Zeke said last Friday night. He's right, Virgil hates to lie. He always has. And I know he's not crazy. I'm starting to think I am, because part of me actually wants to believe him. All common sense tells me not to. But I've always believed Virgil on everything...I really must be crazy! I'm actually starting to believe him. I don't know how, but all I know is that I trust him. Wow, I can't believe I feel this way, but I think I would rather be crazy and be friends with Virgil than be popular and not be his friend. I think I'm gonna go to Virgil's house._


	12. Chapter 12

1 "Amy, go get the door!" Virgil yelled without taking his eyes off the video game he was playing.

"Fine, I'm going! Hopefully it's not one of your dumb friends, like usual!"

Virgil smiled a little bit. Even though Amy pretended she didn't, she had become pretty fond of both Zeke and Charlie. Honestly, Virgil couldn't think of who might be at the door, but he didn't really care too much.

"Oh, hi there!" Amy's voice drifted to Virgil from the doorway, and she sounded more friendly than usual, but Virgil just shrugged and kept playing his game.

"Hi Amy!" Stephanie said with a smile. Virgil's little sister was so cute.

"Why are you here, Stephanie?"

"Well-" Stephanie was about to say that she had wanted to talk to Virgil, but then she got an idea. "Can I talk to you for a few seconds, Amy?"

Amy looked surprised, but happy. "Of course!"

Stephanie bent down to Amy's level and lowered her voice a little bit so Virgil wouldn't hear her if he was close by. "I just want you to tell me one thing."

Amy smiled and nodded.

"How often does Virgil lie?"

Amy's smile faded and she crossed her arms. "If you would have asked me anything else I could have told you all sorts of embarrassing stuff about him. But lying?" She shook her head. "Virgil never lies. He's only told a couple lies that I can remember, but who hasn't? And he _never _lies about anything big or important."

Stephanie nodded and smiled a little bit, knowing what she had to do. "Thanks, Amy. Can I talk to Virgil now?"

Amy shrugged and rolled her eyes. "Sure, he's in the living room."

Virgil didn't even look up when Stephanie walked in the room, he just kept playing video games with his back to her.

"Who was it, Amy?" he asked.

Stephanie smiled a little. "No one too important."

Virgil turned around when he heard her voice. "Woah, hey Steph!"

"Hey Virgil."

"Uh, what are you doing here?"

She smiled a little bit. "Do I need a reason to visit my friend?"

Virgil smiled back, answering her like he had once before. "Good point."

"Well, actually, Virgil, like usual, I did come for a reason today."

"Ok. What's up?"

Stephanie sighed as she sat down on the couch. She wanted to look down at the floor and play nervously with the ring she was wearing, but she forced herself to keep her hands still and to slowly look up into Virgil's eyes.

"I believe you."

Her words were barely a whisper, but they seemed to echo over and over again in the silence that followed them. Virgil just stared at her for a few minutes. Finally he shook his head a little bit and laughed softly.

"It's like I want to say something but I don't know what," he said quietly, but he was smiling. "Do you _really_ believe me, Steph?"

She smiled back and nodded her head. "Yeah. I believe that you wouldn't lie to me, so I'll believe you when you tell me something. Even if it sounds crazy," she added with a laugh.

Virgil smiled, then suddenly got a weird look on his face.

"What's wrong?"

"It might not sound so crazy after all."

"Uh, it's time travel, Virgil, of course it does."

Virgil didn't look like he had heard. "Wait right here, Steph." Without another word he took off up the stairs to his bedroom.


	13. Chapter 13

Virgil frantically rummaged through the mess that was his room. He started muttering to himself as he tore everything apart, looking for one thing.

"C'mon, where is it?" He ran to his closet and shoved the clothes in it over to one side. Hanging at the end was his snowsuit. Unzipping it he found a big pocket on the inside and felt it. There was definitely something in there. Holding his breath he pulled it out and ran back downstairs.

OoOoOoOoOoOo

Stephanie was feeling extremely confused. She felt better after choosing to believe Virgil, but now he had taken off without any explanation. Playing with a small strand of hair she listened as he threw things around in his room upstairs. After a few minutes she heard his door open and shut again, then heard his feet running down the stairs.

"Virgil, what's going on?" she asked as soon as her friend came into sight.

With a victorious smile Virgil held up a VHS tape with nothing written on it.

"Uh, it's a tape."

"Not just any tape! The big football game is coming up still, right?"

"Well, yeah. Derek won't stop talking about it."

"What if I told you that you could watch the game right now?"

Stephanie didn't answer. She had no clue how to respond. But Virgil just smiled and stuck the tape into his VCR. Stephanie began to watch, still feeling confused, but soon she was leaning forward with her mouth open in amazement. When the tape ended she fell back against the couch and looked up at Virgil.

"Is that really...?"

Virgil nodded. "That's the game that's next Friday. Or at least, how it happened in the past. Or the future. Time travel can get confusing. But you guys asked me to go back and change it since the team lost and Derek felt like it was his fault. I took this tape with me then to show you guys when I got back. Because I took it with me on that jump it still existed. Then I forgot to take it out of my snowsuit. So I still have it."

"It's really true," Stephanie whispered.

"Of course it is, Steph. I told you I would never lie to you."

"I'm sorry, Virgil," she said softly. Suddenly she looked up at him and her smile became huge. She jumped off the couch.

"It's really true! You really time traveled! That is so cool!!"

Virgil smiled. "That's what you told me the first time you found out. The time that doesn't exist now."

She shook her head. "That is so weird."

Virgil stood up. "I know it is. I'm just glad you believe me now, like you did then."

"This is so huge, Virg!"

"But you can't tell anyone. Ok?"

"Ok."

"Promise me you won't tell anyone at all."

She looked up at Virgil and saw how serious he was. Then she nodded. "I promise, Virgil."


	14. Chapter 14

Stephanie sat alone in her room, not stopping the tears that ran down her face. She slowly shook her head, not wanting to believe what she had seen, but unable to get it out of her head. Trying to calm down enough to talk, she reached over and grabbed her phone.

OoOoOoOoOoOo

Virgil looked up as his phone rang. He leaned over and picked it up.

"Hello?"

"Uh, Virgil?" a choked up voice answered.

His eyes got wide and his stomach tied in a knot. "Stephanie, what's wrong?"

"Um-" Her voice ended in a sob.

"Hold on I'll be right there." Virgil quickly hung up the phone then ran downstairs.

"Where are you going, speedy?" his dad asked from where he was sitting on the couch.

"I'm going to Stephanie's, I'll be back in not too long."

He ran into the kitchen and grabbed a bag from the cupboard. Looking down at hit he shook his head. It was pasta shells. He quickly put it back and grabbed the pistachio nuts that were there.

As he drove to Stephanie's house Virgil's mind was racing. He hoped so much that it wouldn't be what he thought it was, but something told him that it would be. As he pulled to a stop at the stop sign he banged his fist against the wheel.

"I've changed the past before! Why couldn't I change this?" he wondered out loud. "Why did this have to happen again? I don't understand."

OoOoOoOoOoOo

Stephanie looked up when she heard a knock on her door. She quickly wiped the tears off her face.

"Come in."

The door opened slowly and Virgil stuck his head in. "Hey, Steph."

"Hey Virg," she said softly.

Virgil came in quickly and sat down in front of her. "What's wrong, Stephanie?"

"Well, um, I had to go to the mall today."

Virgil listened quietly. So far it wasn't the same, but she had only gotten one sentence out. He hoped against hope that it wouldn't be about Derek and Jocelyn.

"And, well, I saw Derek there."

He stayed quiet, but Virgil's hope had died.

"He was with Jocelyn Lee." Stephanie paused to brush the tears off her face again. "They were by themselves, and they were holding hands, then Derek put his arm around her. It was pretty obvious that it wasn't just a friendly thing."

Virgil let out a small sigh of relief. It wasn't as bad as last time. But it was still bad. Poor Stephanie. "Steph, I'm sorry."

"I knew it, too," Stephanie said softly, shaking her head. "I feel so stupid. I saw this coming but didn't want to admit it."

"Well, Stephanie, I brought you some pistachio nuts because I knew how much you liked them. I almost brought some pasta shells on accident."

Stephanie smiled a little bit, and took the bag of pistachios. "Thanks, Virgil. You're a good friend." Stephanie looked at him for a few seconds. "Are you ok? You look like you want to say something."

Virgil sighed. "It's not that I want to say something. It's that I feel like I should but can't decide."

Stephanie pushed her hair back and wiped her eyes again. "Well, now I'm curious, so you have to tell me." She tried to smile a little bit but couldn't when she saw how serious Virgil's face was.

He looked up at her and he looked almost as sad as she was feeling.

"Steph, this has happened before."

"What are you talking about, Virg?"

"When we were the minutemen, in the past or the future or whatever it was. In the time that only me and Charlie and Zeke know about. Almost this exact same thing happened. Except it was-" He shook his head. "It just happened."

Stephanie stared at him in shock, unable to say anything.

"Believe me, Stephanie, if there were any way I could have saved you from being hurt like this I would have."

She had to hold back tears again. "You could have told me," she whispered.

"I didn't know he'd do it again."

"He's the same guy, whatever time he's in. I deserve to know things like that, Virgil."

Virgil sighed. "You would have been hurt either way. I wanted to keep you from this."

Stephanie looked down as a tear slid down her face again. "You're right, Virgil. I'm sorry. Derek just isn't the same guy he used to be."

"No, Stephanie. _I'm_ sorry. You deserve to know what Derek's like. I should have told you. He's not the same, and he hasn't been for a long time. I think it started freshman year."

"Oh Virgil if this is about what happened that first day you have to know that Derek didn't mean for things to happen like they did. He's told me that he's sorry for what happened. But it can't be changed."

"Actually, Steph, it could have been. I almost did change it. But not after I realized that doing that would be a mistake."

Stephanie held her head in her hands. "Virgil, what are you talking about?!"

"Ok, when I told you about the minutemen, I didn't exactly include everything."

"What did you leave out?"

"When we went back to shut down the black hole, we went back to the first day of freshman year. I was about to change what happened when I saw Derek. He wasn't trying to stop it. He wasn't even just watching, which would have been bad enough. He was in on it. I'm glad I didn't change it, because I realized that Derek isn't the kind of guy I want for a friend."

Stephanie looked at him in shock, then slowly asked, "Is there anything else you left out?"

"No. I only left out the stuff about Derek because I was afraid to tell you. I was so scared that you wouldn't believe me anyways. I figured that if I included the parts about Derek you would hate my guts."

"I'm sorry about Derek, Virgil. I see why you didn't tell me. But I'm glad that I know now. I just can't keep doing this."

"Doing what?"

"Living this lie," she answered in a whisper. "Staying with Derek when I want to be with you. Being popular but not having any real friends when friends are all I want and I could have that with you and your friends."

Virgil smiled a little bit. "Are you serious, Steph? I want you to be, I really do, but are you sure? I mean, you can break up with Derek and still be popular. If you hang with us, people are going to talk. And people can be pretty brutal in that school."

Stephanie looked at him. "I'm not sure. I'm not going to lie, I like being popular. But not when it's like this. If people talk, that's their problem."

Virgil smiled wide and hugged Stephanie. "I'm glad, Steph."


	15. Epilogue

_Dear Diary, _

_Not very long ago I felt completely torn. Honestly I was torn between being popular and actually being happy. I don't feel that was any more. Actually, I feel better than I have through all of high school. I'm not sure why it took me this long, but I'm so glad I finally made the right decision. I broke up with Derek, but rumors are going around that he's dating Jocelyn Lee. That doesn't surprise me. It was hard to do, and it was painful, but I'm glad it's over. I've been hanging out with Virgil and Charlie and Zeke, and Jeanette is there too most of the time. All of them are actually really cool. Zeke isn't all that hard to relate to, and even though Charlie's super smart he's still cool. Jeanette can be lots of fun, and of course Virgil is still Virgil. I really like him, but we both agreed not to date each other or anyone else for a while. I have to admit, it's been pretty hard around school. People talk, and the majority of it isn't nice. Going from one of the most popular girls in school to one of the "dorks" was hard, but it was totally worth it. It's so nice to not be torn anymore. _


End file.
